llmercll

Hello!

I recently bought a used Civic that came with and HID kit. I replaced them with factory bulbs, but am not getting any low beams. If I go into highbeam mode, lights come on.

I've read about various issues with this and how there are recalls for the problem. I'd really appreciate some help!

thanks!

ezone

Seriously? Does everyone have no idea what a RECALL is?

ANY DEALERSHIP will help you.

llmercll

I should have been more specific in my original post. I understand what a recall is, but am unsure whether or not I'm eligible for a free repair.

I'm the second owner, the car is over 10 years old, and there's no open recall on my VIN. Supposedly the first owner had it fixed already.

ezone

Post me your VIN if you are in the USA.

ezone

Recalls already done according to the info I got. If it hadn't already been completed, it would be free to you.

Since the recall has already been completed, then the manufacturer has fulfilled their obligation.

You are probably on your own with getting it fixed.

Make sure the low beam bulbs are good. (I have missed this before!)
I'd get a wiring diagram and a test light and start digging.

llmercll

Thanks for the support =)

I tried a replacement switch, no luck. Now I'm going to try new bulbs and swap in some new fuses/relays.

I don't know how to check the 3 prong plugs for power. I mean, I can stick a voltmeter in there and see 12v, but I don't know which prong is which or what they should be reading at .

ezone

On the 3 wire headlight bulb connectors, you have a single wire with power, the other 2 will supply a ground on one or the other, depending on high or low beam selected.
Red/wht is low beam, and red/blu is high beam for both headlight bulb connectors.
Power (B+) should be on the red (right side), and on the red/yel (drivers side).

Now, you already found battery voltage at the connectors, right?
Move to the red/white wire(s), test to find ground. That's the low beam control.




Did you see the wire I described that was spliced in at the headlight switch connector?

Measure that wire with all lights OFF. What is it?
Now..
Turn the headlight switch on low beam, see if that wire now has ground on it.

You should be able to connect a ground to that same red/wht wire and get the low beams to come on from that switch connector too.


Got your own wiring diagram yet?


HTH

llmercll

Tried new bulbs, relays and fuses (I actually just switched around some identical fuses and relays), no luck there.

I found a wiring diagram and will be going at it with my multimeter today. I don't understand electronics much, including grounding. Do I just set my multimeter to "speaker" aka continuity mode? I'm in for some work =p

I took some pictures so you can "see what I see"

Passenger side plug
http://img99.imageshack.us/img99/5636/img0420nl.jpg

what goes into switch
http://img545.imageshack.us/img545/5677/img0433ub.jpg

I noticed there is a lot of yellow "goo" on the headlight connectors. I found a lot of it around my ELD when I changed that too (was showing a p1298 code). Could it be related?

thanks again for your help

llmercll

Jut got back from the garage.

The plug isn't getting anything when I switch on the lowbeams. Zero voltage across all 3 wires.

If I switch on the highbeams, I get

11.78v at r/b
12v at r
.17v at r/w

these were done at dc 20v setting with the positive lead on the wire, and the negative lead on the exhaust manifold

Here is a copy of my Haynes wiring schematic (I sincerely hope it isn't the multiplex control unit that's causing this)

http://img713.imageshack.us/img713/7537/001ygt.jpg

It looks like the highbeam switch is turning on the lowbeams, and the lowbeam switch isn't working at all. Could it be a bad ground somewhere?

CraigW

iTrader: (1)

https://www.civicforums.com/forums/a...6&d=1281967392

https://www.civicforums.com/forums/a...0&d=1267189121

Here is the theory ( ezone is spot on again ) And another schematic.

I would be looking at why the common terminal ( RED & RED/YEL ) is loosing voltage when in low beam position.

Use a 12 volt test light to provide a little more loading than dmm.

ezone

My brain melted today. Only 105 in the shop at 3pm...I ain't built for this garbage.

The goo in the connectors is dielectric grease, kind of a waterproofing that is applied to almost all unsealed connections on the outside of the car.


Ummm, are you working the switch correctly? Pull it toward you for flash-to-pass (momentary high beams), release it for low beams, and push it away from you for high beams.


If you mean like where a wire was bolted to the body, then technically, no...because the headlight switch for both high and low use the same ground point.

Appears that the multiplex can't be the cause either, if I'm looking at the diagram correctly. Appears that it receives all the signals as inputs, but does not override the switch on the steering column. (IOW you could remove the MICU and the headlights would still work normally IF I read this right).

Also, there are differences between Canadian market and USA market headlight diagrams. DRL?

I can't even think about this mess right now...

llmercll

I'm so embarrassed to admit this, but I wasn't working the switch properly. I became aware of the "problem" in the first place when a mechanic failed my inspection because of it, he told me my lowbeams weren't working.

I figured he would know more than I, then saw the recall, and put the possibility of anything else out of my head. It didn't help that the highbeams only come on if you push out in lowbeam mode, and that the lowbeam icon on my combination switch looks identical to the dash highbeam indicator, but still, I should have tried every possible option, but instead jumped to conclusions and wasted a lot of time because of it.

I'm so ashamed I wasted your time with this as well, and am very truly sorry. I'm going to give everyone who posted in this thread + rep.

On the bright side I learned a bit about how my car headlight and electrical system works =)

ezone

Wait...
You didn't actually check this for yourself?
Or did you not know how to operate it either?

How did you drive at night?






I can think of 3 (or maybe 4) different common configurations for high beam light switches over the last few decades...

So... this inspector mechanic guy --- first day on the job??
Maybe he has only experienced late model GM products, or what? What would this guy do if someone drove in a car from a few decades ago that has a floor mounted high-beam switch?
Would he fail that too, just because he doesn't know how to operate it?
How many turn signal switches would this guy try to replace before figuring it out?
And who would suffer paying for this clown to learn how they work?

Could this guy find the horn button on a late 70s Ford?

-----------------------------------------------------

You should have seen how long it took for me to figure out how to operate the rear wiper on one Daewoo....... Didn't work like any other car I had ever been in in my life.

llmercll

I didn't know how to operate it either. My first car (this is only my second) went "lights off -> lowbeams -> highbeams" all by rotating the switch handle. This one goes from "lights off -> interior lights + fog lights -> lowbeams" and then once lowbeams are on I need to push it out for highbeams. If I push it out and it isn't in lowbeam position, nothing happens, which may be why I missed it.

I haven't been driving it at night. I've only had the car a little over a week and haven't needed to drive at night though.

I'm surprised the mechanic didn't figure it out either, I was there with him and saw him switch through the modes, going back and forth between the fog lights and lowbeams going "what the hell". At the time of course I thought he was going from low to highbeams, and the lows weren't working =p